ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – Hundreds of text messages showing up on mobile phones claiming to be from the Alaska Department of Motor Vehicles are the work of scammers, city and state authorities warned.
The Department of Public Safety and the Anchorage Police Department both sent out warnings Thursday about what they call “smishing” scams, or SMS phishing.
The scams show up in the form of a text message advising the owner of the phone that they have unpaid traffic violations and if they are not paid by the advertised deadline, DMV officials will suspend their driver’s license, along with other penalties.
State troopers said its Fairbanks dispatch center had received hundreds of complaints about the threatening text messages on Thursday and it was being investigated.
Additionally, Anchorage police reported on their news page that they were seeing an “increase” in scam texts. APD advised victims to do the following:
- Do not respond or interact with the messages
- If you believe the message to be authentic, make a point to reach out to your local DMV office to confirm it
Anchorage police added that the DMV would not reach out to residents by text.
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